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October and November Reading
Dec. 7th, 2013 04:31 pmSaga, Volume 2 (Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples) (2013): Continuing the adventures of Hazel's star-crossed parents against the backdrop of a galaxy-spanning conflict. Continues to hit my buttons, especially the end-of-volume cliffhanger.
Kenobi (John Jackson Miller) (2013): Star Wars: the western! If you think about it too hard I am not sure it makes sense, but while I was reading it entertained me. The novels focuses mostly on non-Kenobi characters (OCs?) entangled in the life of xxx Oasis.
When the King Comes Home (Caroline Stevermer) (2000): Hail Rosamer, daughter of rural wool merchants and artist's apprentice, has less than no interest in politics. Politics find her anyway in a quarrel with a former co-apprentice, whuch tumbles her into larger intrigues.
Set in the same universe as A College of Magics, some hundreds of years previous, and centering around attempts to resurrect and control Good King Julian, a near-legendary figure 200 years dead.
Hail is a splendid narrator: impetuous, impressed with herself and her budding artistic talents. Stevermer's narrative voice us aware of Hail's less than charming aspects, and channeled through the young woman takes on a friendly wryness.
The plot is as light as the voice. Hail is thrown around by events, rarely conscious of or concerned by the larger or long term consequences of the desires she acts on. The kingdom's instability, the implications of the magics wielded around her, the politics surrounding conversations between her kin, her friends, her mistress, are secondary ir lost on her. Hail wants to make art, and be seen making great art, and plot slips in around the edges of those passions.
The Other Half of the Sky (Ed. Athena Andreadis, Kay Holt) (2013): Being an anthology Going back to an old review, I recap:
Are the ideas compelling?
Do the plots interest me?
Is the spelling and grammer readable?
Have the spelling and grammar been mangled for good reasons that support the idea or plot?
I wasn't really in the mood for this collection. Most of the stories were competent, sometimes rising to greater interest or experiments falling short of success. Finders feels like setup or prequel for something interesting. This Alakie... mangled grammer, trying to support the idea, but fell short of capturing my interest; The Waiting Stars set up interesting worldbuilding and ethical conundrums; Velocity's Ghost has an interesting plot twist around education, propoganda, and long-term planning; Dagger and Mask and Ouroboros are passive-voice stories that didn't play well back to back. Cathedral has a male narrator pining for a female character whose actions are pivotal to the conclusion; it was annoying. And so forth.
( Contents. )
Kenobi (John Jackson Miller) (2013): Star Wars: the western! If you think about it too hard I am not sure it makes sense, but while I was reading it entertained me. The novels focuses mostly on non-Kenobi characters (OCs?) entangled in the life of xxx Oasis.
When the King Comes Home (Caroline Stevermer) (2000): Hail Rosamer, daughter of rural wool merchants and artist's apprentice, has less than no interest in politics. Politics find her anyway in a quarrel with a former co-apprentice, whuch tumbles her into larger intrigues.
Set in the same universe as A College of Magics, some hundreds of years previous, and centering around attempts to resurrect and control Good King Julian, a near-legendary figure 200 years dead.
Hail is a splendid narrator: impetuous, impressed with herself and her budding artistic talents. Stevermer's narrative voice us aware of Hail's less than charming aspects, and channeled through the young woman takes on a friendly wryness.
The plot is as light as the voice. Hail is thrown around by events, rarely conscious of or concerned by the larger or long term consequences of the desires she acts on. The kingdom's instability, the implications of the magics wielded around her, the politics surrounding conversations between her kin, her friends, her mistress, are secondary ir lost on her. Hail wants to make art, and be seen making great art, and plot slips in around the edges of those passions.
The Other Half of the Sky (Ed. Athena Andreadis, Kay Holt) (2013): Being an anthology Going back to an old review, I recap:
Are the ideas compelling?
Do the plots interest me?
Is the spelling and grammer readable?
Have the spelling and grammar been mangled for good reasons that support the idea or plot?
I wasn't really in the mood for this collection. Most of the stories were competent, sometimes rising to greater interest or experiments falling short of success. Finders feels like setup or prequel for something interesting. This Alakie... mangled grammer, trying to support the idea, but fell short of capturing my interest; The Waiting Stars set up interesting worldbuilding and ethical conundrums; Velocity's Ghost has an interesting plot twist around education, propoganda, and long-term planning; Dagger and Mask and Ouroboros are passive-voice stories that didn't play well back to back. Cathedral has a male narrator pining for a female character whose actions are pivotal to the conclusion; it was annoying. And so forth.
( Contents. )
